Maybe
by CaptianSwanRumbelleLover
Summary: Hook finds a brokenhearted Belle stood at the town line after Emma returns his heart (I own nothing/please review)


Maybe

_**'Authors note:: In this story, neither Belle nor Rumple can be seen by the other on either side of the town line. I don't know if that is what the writers had intended as belle was looking away from Rumple so I'm not sure if she could see him or not. Anyway, just a small heads up. On with the story, Dearies xx'**_

...

Belle stood at the town line for almost an hour after the events that transpired earlier. She stood in silence wondering what happened now. Was Rumple still on the other side? Or had he walked away? Did she really care anymore?...

Questions were swirling around her head as she thought of the future without him. What would happen to either of them? Their home? The pawn shop? Oh god! She would have to go back and face everything that was her husband. All his trinkets and items that he 'acquired' over the years. Could she even face the shop now? What about the bed they shared back home. So many things that represented Rumple were now without a tether. They were meaningless without him. Could she really return to this town without him...

She was quickly snapped from her terrifying thoughts as she heard footsteps behind her. Suddenly feeling a lot more vulnerable than normal, she grasped the dagger more firmly in her hand and quickly span around to lash out at whoever it was. But she stopped her arm in mid air when she saw Killian a few feet behind her. His arm and hook raised in defence.

"Easy love. It's just me" he said with concern and just an inkling of fear. Given everything that she had gone through today, he was worried about her. Belle eyed him for a moment with a face that contained no emotion and slowly brought her arm back down to her side. She took a deep breath and took a few steps towards him.

"Back in one piece then?" She said shooting a look at Killian's newly repaired chest. He followed her stare and let out a hollow laugh.

"Yes, Emma did me the honour of..."

"You knew didn't you?" Belle raised her voice suddenly which caused Killian to jump and fall silent. He knew that she would ask him at some point so why not make it now?  
>He let out a sigh of his own and told her straight...<p>

"Yes I knew" Killian tried to maintain his composure but looking Belle in the eye and saying that was incredibly difficult. Belle closed her eyes to attempt to blink back the tears and brought her hand up to slap his face. Hook braced for impact but the blow never came. Instead Belles hand balled into a fist and landed weakly on Killian's chest. The tears them became too much to bear and she began to sob. Killian instantly brought his arms around her and Belle brought her other hand to his chest once the metal dagger landed on the concrete road with a loud clang.

Belle suddenly felt although she weighed a tonne and fell to her knees. Killian fell with her and kept his arms around her as she cried. Her despair was like poison in his veins. He kept thinking that if he had told her about this sooner instead of using Gold for his personal gain, he might have saved her this much pain. He was about to tell her that everything was alright but they both knew that that was a lie. So he decided to go with what he truly felt...

"I am so sorry Belle" he spoke as he rested his chin on her head and let the poor girl cry..

"I really am" he continued with as much remorse as she could give her. Belles cries grew a little louder and Killian tightened his hold. After a few more moments, she quietened and brought her head back up to face him...

"I know you are, Killian" she said with a small smile. She couldn't deny that she was still angry that he didn't tell her anything, but that anger didn't compare with the anger she felt towards Gold. And to herself.

"We should have known, Killian. We should have guessed. You knew all along that he would never let anyone have power over him. I shouldn't have been so blind. Hints were falling in my face and I dismissed them out of..." Belle couldn't finish her sentence at the risk of crying again so she shook her head out of shame towards herself. Killian couldn't believe what he was hearing. Was she really blaming herself for what the coward did to her? None of this was her fault and she needed to know that.

"Belle listen to me" his voice was firm but quiet as he didn't want to scare her...

"The ones at fault here are Gold and myself. I should have told you what he was doing as soon as I found out, but I used his lies for my own benefit and he lied to you using love and power. You have nothing to feel guilty for" Killian did his best to convince her but Belle was adamant that she should have seen through Gold's lies. But that was the sort of person she was. Always looking for the best in people.

Belle thought about what Killian said and her frown slowly began to soften. But she still had some doubts...

"Do you think I did the right thing? Was sending him away defenceless the right thing to do?" she spoke with a hopeful look as if asking a judge for a verdict. Killian took a deep breath, placed his hand and hook on her shoulder and decided on speaking plainly with her...

"Love, I am the last person whom you should be asking that as I am as biased as they come. But I'm not going to lie to you anymore. In my eyes, Rumplestiltskin will always be a monster. He took my first love, my hand and my heart and my revenge for him turned my soul the darkest it has ever been. And I know that seeking revenge was my own doing but Rumplestiltskin unleashed a beast in me that did not care what it did or who it hurt"

Belle hung her head to conceal the fact that more tears would soon emerge as she took in everything Killian said. Gold had done all of these horrible things to him and so many others. This caused her to try and convince herself that what she did was the right thing to do but she was not given a chance as Killian wasn't finished. He tilted her chin up with his hook to force her to look in his eyes...

"But having said all of that, I strongly believe that a love that someone has for you can change you. It is seen throughout this town. Emma changing through the love of her son and her parents, Regina changing through the love of Henry and Robin Hood, and truthfully, me meeting Emma and showing me that I can indeed love again, was the biggest change of all"

"Yeah, I know" Belle spoke with a watery smile as she tapped her cheek with her finger indicating that the man Killian was before knocked her out and would have killed her with his hook. Killian grimaced at the memory but Belle did not hold it against him.

"My point, love, is that no matter how dark a heart is, it can be lightened with the love that comes from the people around you. Gold did prove this in some ways like going to find Baelfire without his power and risking his own existence to save Henry from Pan"

Belle thought back to these moments and lightly smiled as she remembered hoe selfless Rumple could be. She remembered how heartbroken he was when he lost Bae over and over again. She remembered how scared, angry and vulnerable he was while being controlled by Zelena. She remembered his death along with Pan's and how heartbroken she was at the thought of never seeing him again...

Killian snapped her out of it...

"Belle, I'm not saying that I will forgive him for what he has done to me and to the people I love. But I think perhaps you should"

Belle's jaw dropped a little. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. She was about to ask him why but he stopped her with a shake of his head.

"You love him, Belle, you always have and you always will. I can see the pain of loosing him eating you up inside and you do not deserve that. You bring out the best in people and Gold doesn't deserve your love, but I have no doubt that that will stop you from giving it"

Belle stood stunned by Killian's words and after a few moments, realised that he was right. He may have done some awful things, and lying about the dagger was defiantly the worst one, and it would take her forever to forgive him, but despite all that, she still loved him and she vowed long ago that she would never stop fighting for him. For them.

"I will not force you to forgive him straight away or even ever. But I am saying take some time to think about what you stand to loose if you let him go completely. Maybe one day you can look past this and see the good in him that only you can see"

She brought her gaze up to Killian's eyes and smiled at him, he beamed down at her as he knew she got the message. She raised herself up on her toes and lightly kissed his cheek.

"Thank you, Killian. For everything"

Killian continued to smile and winked at her...

"Anytime love"

Belle nodded in confirmation to herself.

"Maybe one day..." she said with some of that optimism and hope for the future that Killian hadn't seen all day.

"Maybe. But right now, there is a get together at Grannies celebrating the life and death of dearly departed Ingrid and her sacrifice and our little Arendelle princesses. There are people desperate to see you" Killian spoke with a bouncy tone and held his arm out...

"Shall we?"

Belle giggled as she thought for a moment then linked her arm through Killian's and they began to back into the centre of town. She took one last glance over her shoulder towards the town line and there was a sense of peace within her. This was not the end, just a bump in the road. Maybe one day things would be different...

Maybe

_**(Reviews are like Christmas presents x merry Christmas readers)**_


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